Welcome to the middle of summer! This is the first edition of my blog-newsletter for Joann Rea Fine Art Inc. I have had a busy year with a big relocation from the Washington DC area to Chicago. I also completed a few recent exhibitions, including the beautiful Price-Marin Galleries in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
I was recently given several interview questions about my life's work as an artist. I thought my blog would be a great place to print some of them. The following is an excerpt of my interview Q&A:
Q: What do clients most ask you about your work when they have had the opportunity to meet you?
JR: The most frequently asked question I get is "How long did it take you to paint this?" And one would think at this point in time I would know the answer or at least have a contrived answer. I usually start several paintings at once and then work on each one periodically, perhaps five minutes or perhaps five hours, as the mood strikes me. Someday I will work on only one painting from start to finish and time myself. The second question often is about the specific locations of paintings. One gallery owner suggested I not title my paintings using the formal name of the place and let the viewer relate his or her own experience to the painting which a wonderful though idealistic thought. Titling paintings is difficult and I have spent hours agonizing over this task. I used to have a thesaurus of synonyms I used frequently but it hasn't surfaced since we moved to Chicago. Using the formal names is definitely oversimplifying the matter but it is faster and easier.
Q: Now that you have settled from the Washington, DC, area to the Chicago Area, have you had a chance to go exploring for new local visual inspiration for future paintings?
JR: I could never quit painting the Mid Atlantic region which DC is a part of because of its intrinsic natural beauty. I do use photographs as a reference point when starting new paintings and I have hundreds of photos of the Virginia, Maryland, DC area in a stack labelled "must paint." In Chicago where I live now I find the intricate and ornate architecture of many of the old houses, churches, and quaint business districts intriguing but I don't know yet if I can do them justice with the oil paints. Also the Chicago cityscapes, Lake Michigan, the harbors, Navy Pier, are all beautiful in their different guises. I will soon find out if I can paint them as well as the flora and lush landscapes of the east coast.
Q: Is there a specific location or region that you have always wanted to paint but haven't so far?
JR: Someday I hope to complete some of the paintings I have started but not completed, a major task in itself. Some of these pieces are of the southwestern United States, specifically Joshua Tree National Park and its immense vistas, the strange configuration of the cactus in the deserts set against the bright blue skies and desert sands, the arid hills of southern California, etc. etc. We once took a vacation to Joshua Tree in the spring thinking that we would see the desert in bloom, not realizing that Joshua Tree and other deserts display their amazing color only after a rain, so we didn't see one flowering plant the entire length of the park. In trying to remember what else is in this stack of "unfinished paintings" are rainbows from Hawaii, mountains in Colorado, landscapes and small towns from the Netherlands, Venice, the Amalfi coastline, and on and on. Wherever I am, I constantly compose paintings in my mind, subject matter is literally everywhere and anywhere. Obviously I can't paint it all......
Q: Although reknowned as a floral landscape painter, you have always faithfully frozen in time the images of your children through your exquisite portrait painting. What are your influences? Old Masters?
JR: Portraiture is difficult at best and attempting to capture a close resemblance is a trying process. Brushstrokes the width of a hair's breadth can make or break a likeness so it is challenging but also rewarding when successful. Even my favorites the "old masters" supposedly didn't capture exact resemblances yet their portraits capture the soul or the entity of their subjects, the ultimate goal of a painter. Cameras are for recording exact images. As I look at my portraits, the only one that I have painted using the venue of the old masters is the one of Anne which is painted on a dark background with a light softly shining from the right side. It is a simple yet dramatic painting and does capture the sweetness of the lovely child.
My fall exhibition schedule will be available in the August-September issues of my blog. You can contact me through my website, http://www.joannrea.com/ or (800) 818-3734. Email reajoann@yahoo.com.
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